1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a computer implemented method for transferring items between virtual universes. More specifically, the present invention relates to obtaining an item from a virtual universe for management within a second virtual universe.
2. Description of the Related Art
Modern uses of networked computers leverage the graphics processing power of client computers. The client computer is a computer typically assigned the task of supporting user input and displaying output to a user. Many users reach online environments or virtual universes by using a client computer. A virtual universe permits a user to adopt an avatar or a graphical representation of the user. The user has the power to move the avatar, have the avatar interact with objects, and have the avatar interact with the avatars of other users.
A virtual universe depends on a coordinate system to create anchor points where avatars and other objects may be located for purposes of rendering the avatars and objects to each user's computer. Coordinates are two or more units that define a position in a virtual universe. The coordinates may be a Cartesian set of points that define planes and altitudes, however, global coordinates are also known to be used. Typically, an object has a location referenced by a triplet of numbers. The object may also have a region or other descriptor of a subset of space within the virtual universe.
In addition to a location, proper rendering of an object or avatar may depend on an orientation or attitude of the object or avatar. An attitude is an overall orientation of an object or avatar in relation to a plane or a vector. For example, an attitude may be based on a number of degrees that an object is offset from a positive direction along a coordinate axis. For virtual universes that form analogs to a real world, north and south compass points may correspond to a positive direction along a first axis and a negative direction along the same axis. East and west may be represented in a similar manner, along a second axis. A third axis may correspond to height. Attitudes may also include offsets measuring an angle above a plane.
Some virtual universes are organized to present an avatar within a three-dimensional environment. Such virtual universes may provide a “first person point of view.” Within a first person point of view, a client computer renders scenery to a two-dimensional screen to produce a three-dimensional illusion or effect. An example of a three-dimensional illusion includes diminishing the size of an object as the object becomes relatively distant from the avatar's position in the virtual world. Another example of a three-dimensional illusion is displaying a object as obscuring a more distant object. Each of these illusions is controlled by rendering rules. Rendering rules are a set of rules or steps that a client computer executes to display the two-dimensional image so that the display provides impressions of depth comparable to what one would see in real-life scenery.
Many virtual universes provide a user with a teleport feature that permits a user to change an avatar location. The changed location causes a perspective of the avatar to change, and thus changes a screen image of the virtual universe. The perspective may cause objects to be rendered at different orientations and distances from the avatar. The perspective may cause formerly rendered objects to be obscured by other objects. Likewise, the perspective may cause formerly rendered objects to be so distant that the objects are not rendered in the second perspective. In this case, a client computer renders a new set of objects to the user's computer display screen.
Users frequently participate in multiple virtual universes. Unfortunately, objects that a user creates or acquires in one universe are not transferable to a second universe. Consequently, a user who creates an object in a first virtual universe must devote substantial time to recreating the object if he desires to have the same object appear in additional virtual universes. Because the avatar is also an object, a user also has difficulty making the same or similar avatar appear in additional universes. In addition to the mere transmitting of object data, the two virtual universe hosts that support two virtual universes may use different storage schemes for objects. Consequently, an object of a first virtual universe may be incompatible with a second virtual universe host even when the object is transferred to the second virtual universe.
Thus, a need exists to provide a user with a way to share objects under his control from one virtual universe to a second virtual universe.